UAE officer loses lawsuit over trafficking claims

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A naval officer from the United Arab Emirates has lost a lawsuit that claimed he didn't pay a domestic servant for long hours of work.

A federal judge in Rhode Island signed an order of default Monday against Col. Arif Mohamed Saeed (sy-EED') Mohamed Al-Ali. His lawyer withdrew from the case in January, saying Al-Ali didn't want to spend more money on the lawsuit.

Since then, letters sent to Al-Ali's address in the United Arab Emirates have been returned as undeliverable.

Elizabeth Ballesteros sued in 2011 after he was arrested and charged with luring her to the United States, failing to pay her and keeping her confined in his house. He was acquitted of those charges last year.